Thursday, December 25

Mugabe Backers operating freely in UK

Simply do not understand this government. The fact that it lies and is hypocritical is not surprising at all. But then, for Gordon Brown to say, "enough is enough" for Zimbabwe and then not doing anything about the fact that businessmen who are supporting Mugabe are allowed to do so freely is absolutely shocking. Perhaps not, it runs in his political philosophy to say one thing and mean something else. Very economical with the truth, is our Gordon. Blowhard git. I quote:

Of 21 companies put on a US blacklist by President Bush last month, 14 are based in Britain, two in the Isle of Man, one in Jersey and one in the British Virgin Islands. The other three are based in the Democratic Republic of Congo, Florida and Zimbabwe itself.

The operations of some British or British-owned companies have also caused concern. It was reported this year that Foreign Office officials were worried that the Zimbabwean subsidiary of the London-based Standard Chartered Bank was violating European Union sanctions. According to inside sources, the Foreign Office asked the Treasury to make “discreet inquiries” as to whether Standard Chartered loans to the Zimbabwean Government breached the sanctions.

Standard Chartered Zimbabwe is a subsidiary of Standard Chartered Plc of Britain. A Foreign Office official was quoted as saying: “I'm still nervous about the position of other [British-owned] banks [in Zimbabwe], and in particular Standard Chartered.”

Britain has failed to take action against individuals and companies while calling for Mr Mugabe to go. By contrast, the US Treasury last month named four financier “cronies” - Mr Bredenkamp, Muller Conrad “Billy” Rautenbach, Nalinee Joy Taveesin and Mahmood Awang Kechik - of Mr Mugabe and put them on a blacklist, freezing their US assets and banning American citizens from doing business with them.

Muller Conrad Rautenbach (aka Billy Rautenback) Zimbabwean businessman “with close ties to the regime”. Supported Zanu (PF) individuals during the conflict with the Democratic Republic of Congo and “provided logistical support” for mining projects that “benefit a small number of corrupt senior officials”. One entity designated is owned by him — Ridgepoint Overseas Developments Ltd

Nalinee Taveesin A Thai businesswoman who has organised “a number of financial, real-estate and gem-related transactions” for Grace Mugabe and others on the US blacklist

Mahmood Awang Kechik A Malaysian urologist. Alleged to have used his clinic to hide the destination of medical equipment coming into the country. Also implicated in schemes to “generate wealth for these regime officials” and the Zimbabwe Government”

Source: US Treasury Department

Compare this with the issue around Muslim charities here in the UK. Here's another story about this issue. The point that I am making is that the British Government, (its protests notwithstanding) goes after Muslim charities because they are proscribed by the USA, but not when it has to do with Mugabe's thugs. Quite an interesting dichotomy, no? But then, I suppose Gordon Brown does not have the bottle to take despots or terrorists on. It simply whines, moans and ruins the economy in its selfish stupid desire to hang on to power. What an incompetent git.